Heaven is for Real....Suckers?

**Spoiler Alert**

Director: Randall Wallace, Starring: Greg Kinnear, Thomas Haden Church, Margo Martindale and Kelly Reilly

Based on Todd Burpo's New York Times bestseller of the same name, Heaven is for Real is part of a recent trend of religiously themed films coming out of Hollywood: Son of God, Noah, and God is Not Dead, with Ridley Scott's Exodus: Gods and Kings slated for a December release.

Heaven is for Real tells the story of Todd Burpo and his family, who reside in a small, farming community in Imperial, Nebraska. After his son Colton (Connor Corum), experiences a near-death experience while in the hospital battling a severe fever, he begins to talk casually about seeing angels and visiting heaven. His father, who is a minister in the community church (played earnestly by Greg Kinnear), begins to take his son's accounts seriously. When Todd begins to incorporate his son's experiences into his Sunday sermons, it makes members of the congregation uneasy and his wife a little annoyed. Beset by hospital bills and Todd's shaky income from his garage door installation business, his wife feels his focus should remain on their financial woes, not their son's heavenly preoccupations.

A weepy, tender score accompanies nearly every scene until it almost becomes deafening; its maudlin violins a cue that the movie won't offend or upset the frail sensibilities of the audience. Everyone in Imperial seems so unbelievably upbeat and friendly they make Up With People seem like bitter cynics.

While others dismiss their son's experiences as imaginative ravings, Todd is convinced his son's visions are real when Colton tells him about seeing his dead grandfather in heaven. Todd shows him a picture of his grandfather as an elderly man which Colton doesn't recognize until he is shown another photo of him in his younger years. Colton identifies the man as the one he had seen, informing his dad that in heaven, "everyone is young." What exactly constitutes "young" in heaven is anyone's guess. Colton also shocks his skeptical mother later when he mentions his "other sister," a baby the Colton's lost in the womb and whose gender was never disclosed to the family. Todd's wife Sonja (Kelly Reilly), has been grieving the loss of her daughter, so when Colton talks of his sister--someone he couldn't have possibly known about--his mother begins to believe her son.

Heaven is for Real isn't the appallingly witless mess God is Not Dead was, but it has it's share of eye-rolling nonsense that will guarantee a chuckle, if not a guffaw.
One such scene finds Todd questioning his son about his heavenly visits. In recalling one incident, Colton describes a visit to the church where his father preaches. While Colton sits alone in a pew, the wall behind the altar dissolves into serene clouds and sky. Angels appear, singing, which prompts Colton to ask them if they might sing We Will Rock You to which they respond with laughter. The scene is cloyingly cute but it only worsens when we see someone dressed in white robes approach Colton in the aisle. You got to be kidding me, I thought; weren't the angels enough? No, we get his holiness too though we don't see his face. More on that later.

Given Todd Burpo's financial troubles, you'd think the angels might provide Colton something useful, like winning lottery numbers rather than stupid warbling. The deceased family members Colton sees don't seem to be any more useful.

Another curious scene is Todd's meeting with a psychologist to discuss his son's otherworldly experiences. Of course the doctor comes off as cold and unsympathetic-the typical characterization of science and scientists as hopelessly out of touch with the spiritual world-but later Todd mentions something Einstein said to buttress an argument for Colton's experiences. The religious want it both ways, I guess.

It all ends as one would expect; the congregation forgives Todd his talk of Colton's heaven though we never learn what became of the Burpo family's financial woes. The outcome is more violins, familial well-being, vast fields of golden wheat, peace and harmony, and not a problem in sight.

Wait a minute; what does Jesus look like? Let's get back to that. We see his robes in church but not his divine visage. In the final moments of the film, we see Todd sitting on the back porch as his children play; his attention riveted on an internet story of a girl who had an experience much like Colton's. A video of the girl painting a portrait reveals Jesus' face. When Todd shows the face to Colton, the boy says "Yeah, that's what he looks like." The audience might share my surprise to learn that Jesus is a dead ringer for Kenny Loggins! That's right; when you die, you'll be greeted at the pearly gates by one half of the 70s' pop duo Loggins and Messina.

Needless to say I left the theater trying hopelessly to suppress a giggle.